Connecting things to your phone using Bluetooth makes them smart. We know this buy now (by*, sorry, easy mistake). Tech companies have been feeding us this concept long enough for our bodies to digest it. And when they start to heat up from an adverse reaction, fortunately there's a smart gadget out there that can let us know. Blue Spark's TempTraq Bluetooth thermometer is now available for purchase. You can snag one for $25.

We've covered the TempTraq before, back when the product was still undergoing FDA review. Six months later, here we are. I should take this moment to point out that the TempTraq is hardly the first Bluetooth-connected thermometer. Temperature is so easy and obvious a thing to send over a wireless connection for someone to have taken this long.

No, what makes TempTraq stand apart is how long it's in use. This product is designed to provide you with continuous readings for up to 24 hours. The product, which can spare you from having to regularly disturb a sick child, is able to send readings every 10 seconds.

The product itself is a patch similar to an adhesive bandage. You stick it under your child's arm.

The companion app doesn't just provide the current temperature, it offers a view at how the data has changed over time. And it sends alerts when your kid's temperature rises into the red zone.

This can save you from having to check up on the baby as often. The thing is, Bluetooth connections can drop and batteries die, so you're probably going to want to keep a close eye nonetheless. And if they start crying, there's a smart way to deal with that too.

Press Release

TempTraq Wireless, Wearable Thermometer Now Available

First Bluetooth Thermometer in the Form of a Soft, Comfortable Patch Monitors Temperature for 24 Hours, Sends Temperature Alerts to Parents' Mobile Devices

CLEVELAND, OH--(Marketwired - May 18, 2015) - When a child is sick and has a fever, the very last thing a parent wants to do is cause more pain or discomfort. TempTraq™, the only wireless, wearable, intelligent Bluetooth® thermometer in the form of a soft comfortable patch to ease parents' worries is now available on www.temptraq.com. It's the first thermometer to continuously monitor body temperature for 24 hours and send alerts to mobile devices through the specially designed, free TempTraq app.

Ideal for today's busy parents, TempTraq provides much needed peace of mind by delivering on-the-spot temperature readings in just seconds. The wearable thermometer alleviates many concerns of those caring for an ill or recovering child, including eliminating the need to continually disturb or wake a sick child to take his or her temperature. Now available for sale, TempTraq is truly the only way for parents to monitor their child's health and recovery. TempTraq includes a free downloadable Apple® or Android™ compatible app, allowing users to reach a new level of health care for children of all ages.

"TempTraq allows parents to keep a close watch on their child's temperature without having to continually disturb them, while also gathering crucial data every 10 seconds for up to 24 hours," said John Gannon, president and CEO of Blue Spark Technologies. "According to our trusted physician advisors, temperature is the most important vital sign. The more data health care professionals have, the better their ability to see trends in the temperature readings and help a child get better."

Dr. Joseph Hahn, retired Cleveland Clinic chief of staff and vice chair of the Board of Governors, and current executive in residence at Cleveland Clinic Foundation Innovations, agrees. "TempTraq is the future of consumer and clinical e-health care. The ability to wirelessly monitor a patient's critical vital signs in real time gives them the care they need while freeing up nurses and physicians to focus on their well-being. TempTraq can follow a patient home, providing their care provider with the critical information they need."

All parents have to do is press the "start" button to activate the thermometer and connect it to the app via the unique code provided. Then, apply the thin, flexible patch thermometer to the underarm of the child, similar to an adhesive bandage. As long as the caregiver is within range of the thermometer, they can easily review data and receive alerts, up to 40 feet away.

Highly accurate, the TempTraq thermometer measures temperatures between 87.0 and 109.3°F. Unlike other devices that provide users with only one point of data and offer no continuous monitoring or alerts, the TempTraq app displays both real time and historical temperature data transmitted from the patch in graphical or tabular view, making it possible for caregivers to see fluctuations and quickly adapt treatment.

TempTraq further simplifies the temperature reading process by providing easy-to-follow colors that indicate temperature levels: Green, less than 100.4°F; orange, equal to or greater than 100.4°F; red, equal to or above the user-set temperature alert level. Caregivers can even receive alerts when a child's temperature enters this designated red zone.

For parents who want to share temperature data with their doctors or family members, TempTraq allows users to send recorded information via email. Through the app, parents can also keep track of when their child eats, drinks or takes medicine. For those caring for multiple children, the TempTraq app conveniently allows them to monitor multiple thermometers simultaneously.

Yeah, $25/pop doesn't seem reasonable at all. Any parent knows you need thermometers more often than that, and most are much cheaper than that. In the off-chance that you're investing in this for a more serious illness, then you'd be going through even MORE of them, at which point other solutions are probably preferable and more affordable than a half-dozen of these.

I agree on needing more, though the flip side is whenever a child is sick, typically, it's a 24 hour period that really needs a constant monitor, and then you are "in the clear", or at least, you can get the data in a period where you don't really want to bother them, and they are out of it anyway, sleeping it out.

I can see the $25, simply that there isn't much competition on this niche to drive costs down, but heck, can we all at least applaud them for getting it thru FDA and into the public hands?

PacoBell

Then you'll be looking for the AmpStrip. It's currently $135 on their IndieGoGo right now and it's reusable and wirelessly rechargeable and comes with a 30-pack of adhesive strips, which comes out to about $4.50 a use compared to $25 with this product. Better for the environment and can be used on both kids and adults. Sounds like a no-brainer to me.

100% safe. Wireless "radiation" is of the non-ionizing form. It doesn't interact with our cells at all. That's why, contrary to uninformed fears, WiFi, Bluetooth, cell phone, cordless phones, etc., are harmless, and people who complain of things like "WiFi sickness" fail to prove so in any blinded test.

ChristianMcC

Thank you for perpetuating the truth!!! My wife still will not stop being ridiculous about this...

@TurboFool:disqus -- excellent points, however you are incorrect. Research on the negative effects of cellphone / BT / Wifi radiation is much easier to publish in Europe than USA. Many EU nations now ban Wifi at schools b/c there is proof that it can have negative effects on children.
This info is very slowly making it's way into USA media, but it's constantly hammered by "doubters" who say it's impossible, despite the existence of lots of research which does point out adverse effects (as is done with industries like w/cigarettes, powerlines, nuclear power, etc).
Forbes article:http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertszczerba/2015/01/13/study-suggests-wi-fi-exposure-more-dangerous-to-kids-than-previously-thought/

The EU banning is is in no way evidence that it's in any way harmful. It's a joke in the science community. There is NO proof, only terrible studies with dubious methodology.

And it's 2015. Nothing "slowly" makes its way to the US. The Internet ensures we get all the news at the same time. Bad science is bad science instantly everywhere.

Your links don't help matters. One is a credulous, weakly written clickbait article, the next is to the actual legislation which is meaningless (politicians are notoriously terrible with science), and the last is a highly biased source of anti-science BS.

Ben Freund

In addition to being very pro-consumer, sadly the EU also make all kinds of bad and/or reactionary decisions...

Bluetooth radiation is supposed to be far lower power than wifi or cellphone radiation, but it is still emitted radiation from a very close source.

There is now proof (see my other comment below) that children are more sensitive to 'non-ionizing radiation', and there is evidence that this type of radiation causes health issues as well.

My POV is that if there is a simple way to take a temperature without Bluetooth, I'd do that first with a young child.

PacoBell

You're being ridiculous. Do you realize that the radiation being emitted by cell towers, radio stations, etc. are orders of magnitude more intense than any bluetooth device (especially the Low Energy variant) you'll come across? And those tend to be continuous wave while Bluetooth must beacon only in short bursts to save battery.

@PacoBell:disqus - Not being ridiculous, just cautious. I work in broadcast TV, am very aware of the effects of non-ionizing radiation at station & transmitter.
Did you know the microwave remote packs for cameras are not used by unions now b/c of the exposure to radiation on the operators? Pretty dangerous.
Bluetooth is the least dangerous among our current low-power radiation intensities -- low power, high frequency is supposed to bounce off bones. But does it? Mostly in adults, yes. But there are now studies saying it does not in kids -- b/c bone density & bone size is so much smaller.

But to your other, larger point -- of course cell towers, radio & TV stations, and even power plants produce a lot more intense EMF. But we don't hold those directly against our bodies most of the day, do we? No, we like them far far far far away. (People who live near them have higher rates of leukemia & cancers, btw. Look up the research?)

Just b/c cellphones are a cool tech & smartphones even cooler, it doesn't mean they are safe. Cigarettes were thought to be healthy at one time, and now we think otherwise.
I'll bet you that happens in the next 25 years in USA as well -- unless we collapse from global extreme weather phenomena, in which case all bets are off. HA HA

A Dream Within a Dream

I would rather check the child's temperature myself even if I had to do that 20 times a day. Caring about a child doesn't mean that you buy an expensive non-reusable gadget but to really care that the child is sick. They will feel you presence and your absence. Anyway, there are some parents who would love to see their kids' statistics, this product would be suitable for them!

something_new

I'm with you. Those' kind of parents exist and will spend money, though I'm not sure if it will be enough to make the product/company viable

Except as the article said, waking up a sick child to constantly take their temperature is not necessarily a good idea. Having a full history, as they sleep, while letting them rest and heal has value.